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Exitosus
Shortly before the Iron Horde Invasion of Azeroth in October of 34 L.C., the League of Lordaeron was tasked with investigating the murders of knights of the Order of the Silver Hand in northern Lordaeron. Eventually, it was found out to be the work of a Lightslayer operating under Reginald Craeton. The First Regiment of the Stormwind Army joined the League's efforts during their Post-Siege Plaguelands Expedition. Craeton was later caught and killed under the joint efforts of the Grand Alliance. This campaign was later referred to as "Exitosus," which translates to "deadly" in the Old Arathorian language used by the Church of the Holy Light. =Dame Castell's Logbook= ---- The following is a logbook kept during the Exitosus campaign by Dame Meredeth Castell, a Sergeant of the League of Lordaeron. September 18th I’ve decided to keep a journal to keep up with recent events. After the investigation is finished, I will turn it in to the proper authorities so that they can decide what to do with it. Recent reports show that people are going missing. No, not just people… but Paladins. Silver Hand Paladins, to be precise. Members of the Order. Prestigious men and women who dedicate their life to spreading the Light and its goodness to all who might receive it. I don’t understand… why target Paladins specifically? Is it a fanatic group? Nonbelievers? I doubt it. No mere fanatic could successfully capture a Paladin. Probably warlocks, or a Death Knight, the very bane of our existence. It’s just odd… one would think there would be some sort of sighting. Anything to give a clue as to who is capturing Paladins and why, but… the reports only detail when they were last seen and where. Nobody claims to have seen anything out of the ordinary in the time that they last saw their comrades. I’ve questioned some of the locals, which is about the extent of what I can do at present without blindly searching the entire country, but they all repeat the same mantra. Nobody saw anything. Is it the truth? Could these people be that invisible? Or are they smart enough to pay off those who saw the deed done? The investigation will continue until these victims are found and returned safely. I will never abandon one of the Silver Hand. I will never abandon one of my own. This concludes today’s entry. I will write more once we’ve received more information. September 22nd My hand won’t stop shaking. Have I always been this unsteady? Why am I allowing myself to be so shaken by this? We found him. Sir Abraham the Wise, renowned Paladin of the Silver Hand. Known as kind and lighthearted, so his comrades say. Dead. We were too late. I should have known. When I received the note, I could feel it in my chest… that loss of a brother. ‘That’s one,’ it read. Mocking me. When we went to Darrowshire, it took some time to find the body, but find it we did after a brief encounter with a troll tribe. His throat was cut, he was disemboweled, and wearing the armor of a Scarlet of all things. His honor was completely stripped from him. Luella performed last rites on him, restoring some dignity and heightening my already impressed opinion of her. She’s doing so well and being strong despite the weight of all of this. I’m proud of her. But… there was one thing alongside Sir Abraham I did not expect to find. A Forsaken, wearing what appeared to be Sir Abraham’s armor and equally as violated as he was. My mind cannot even begin to comprehend the reasoning for why their clothing would be switched or why the body mirrored the Paladin's own... though many people had theories, most of which rested with symbolism. I suspect it could be an Alliance renegade, though my heart sinks at the very thought. The Death Knight mentioned something about a Light… something… I can’t remember what. I’ve never heard the term before. Maybe I’ll ask again later. A funeral pyre was constructed for the Forsaken, just in case whoever did this decided to come back for the body. I don't even want to consider why they would, but the precaution is necessary. I brought the body back to his superiors in Crown Guard Tower. They were just as horrified as I was to hear about what had happened… the leader there seemed particularly stricken. He said he had more men in the field and that he was worried for their safety. He also instructed me to keep a close watch on our remaining Paladins. I left promptly after that. I should have known better. The note I received was unsigned and a huge red flag directly in front of my face, but… I was lost. I had to know what it meant. I could’ve walked the League right into a trap, and it would’ve been my fault, yet whoever sent me this wanted us to know what they did. They wanted to send a message, that much is clear… but what? And why? I feel no more closer to resolving this. One of the Paladins is dead, another could likely be on the way, and we now are fighting against the clock to find and rescue him. I have more questions than I do answers, and no leads on where to start. I need to stay strong. I will do the best that I can for my brothers and sisters. In the mean time, it’s just as Luella said… Knights of the Silver Hand beware. This concludes today’s entry. September 23rd I couldn’t help it. I went back to the scene. After speaking with Corporal Bronson and hearing his valuable insight, I had to know if there was something I missed. Anything that could give me a new lead to follow before the next Paladin is murdered. The more I spoke to him, the more unsettled I became - if that was at all possible. The likelihood of what he told me seemed too high to risk. If we are going to do something, we have to do it soon before the killer strikes again. To do something at all, we need something - anything - to go off of. But of course, I found nothing of true interest. Nothing that could count as a lead, anyway. Upon reexamining the scene, which had long since gone cold, I found a journal lodged beneath one of the stones of the destroyed house. The inside of the cover read that it belonged to Abraham. Further inspection of the diary lead me to conclude that it was all but damaged beyond repair, some pages spattered with blood and others simply torn out. After some time, I managed to recollect the entries from the journal. For the sake of privacy, I debated not putting them here at all, but if my log ever finds its way into the hands of the family… then perhaps they would want to see it for closure. Abraham's Diary :Entry 1, September 12th :It’s easier to remember Lordaeron before the fall, in its prime, than it is to walk this hallowed ground and think of how much it has been through to get there. Broken doesn’t even begin to cover how this land feels. I wish there was more I could do. :Captain Reynolds has sent me on a mission to determine whether or not Darrowshire, the destroyed town in Eastern Plaguelands, is fit and prepared for reconstruction. I am only all too eager to take up this quest; it has been too long since our people have seen what good is. If Darrowshire has been untouched since its destruction, perhaps we can begin preparations of repairing it. It might ease some troubled minds. :I should stop for the night. I can barely see what I am writing anymore, and my candle is all but burnt out now. I only hope my beloved wife is safe and well without me. :Entry 2, September 13th :I am famished. These rations hardly feel like enough to keep me going, and I am exhausted. I could not sleep much last night. I kept hearing a branch snap or the slight rustle of leaves… it was unnerving. The men back at home are going to hear me tell this tale and laugh at my stupidity. Perhaps we’ll share a flagon of ale over it, that way I can at least somewhat bury my humiliation. :My daughter turns two today. My wife wailed at me when I told her that I was going to have to miss the celebration… but she’ll understand. My son was just as disillusioned as she was, but eventually they lost their ire. My responsibilities to the Captain are not something I can just throw away. He doesn’t have children; he wouldn’t understand. :I told her the journey will not take long, and it won’t. I’ve already begun taking notes on Darrowshire’s current status, and things are looking well. I haven’t had time to search the entire town, and most of the belongings I did find seem to be completely damaged, but I’ll only be here for a day longer at most. :I’m eager to leave. My paranoia is getting the best of me. The critters are restless at night, and every noise seems to jolt me. I can’t seem to shake the feeling that I’m being watched. :Entry 3, September 14th :I miss my family. :I love you, Sarah. A large inkblot rests here, as if the writer’s pen had paused on the page for some time. The next line was clearly written by an unsteady hand.* This concludes tonight’s entry. September 23rd I don’t know if I feel better or worse today. I’m right back where I started… except with more visions of dead bodies and disemboweled subjects. More questions, less answers. We traveled to Northpass to question the locals there, hoping to get more information, and to my surprise it yielded good results. There was actually a witness this time, though he didn’t offer much in terms of valuable information. He said he didn’t even see a face. If I wasn’t so engulfed with rage and disgust, I might actually be impressed by this person’s skill. It’s amazing how they manage to be like a ghost… there one minute, but gone the next, like a mere trick of the eye. It begs the question: is there an accomplice? Could it be a group? I’m told the residue is likely fel in origin, but again I must wonder… why are they leaving a trail for us? There was no note this time. Are they even aware of it? We were lead into the Ghostlands. We were, not surprisingly considering most of the contingent consisted of plate-wearing soldiers, spotted by a Sin’dorei patrol along one of the main roads. Myailah went against my orders, but… it provided the necessary distraction for us to cross along the mountain undetected. Somehow she was not killed in the process. I didn’t think Sin’dorei possessed such compassion, truthfully. I’m told that they, too, were experiencing similar murders with their own people… and again I am left wondering where the killer’s loyalty lies. An Alliance renegade? A Horde mercenary? Or perhaps simply a warlock with a vendetta and a very specific agenda. We found Lukas Wells’ body, the second victim of this horrid murderer. Luella examined it briefly and noted that the cut was just like the previous one on Abraham’s. The clothing was also switched again, which I’m still completely bewildered over. What’s the significance? Worst of all, we found something so much more. Luella and Corporal Reinhardt now seem to be in the killer’s sights, and at this point, it’s only a matter of time. This person is quick, effective, and we’re still fighting against the clock to get one step ahead. A smart, logical person would lock them away in the most highly defensible Alliance fortress until the killer could be found. But I can’t. I can’t do that. Arkley’s words have been bouncing around inside my head ever since yesterday, and I’m afraid that if we don’t do something now, the window of opportunity will close and we’ll be arranging two funerals. I proposed a bait and switch. Using Luella and Gregovich, we’ll lure the predator out into the opening in Agamand Mills, out into the trap-ridden soil while the other soldiers cover them. When our hunter appears, we’ll strike. This mission has every reason to fail, and one wrong move could mean death for not only Luella and Gregovich, but others as well. The blood of the League and the First Regiment would be on my hands, but I have to try. I can’t just sit back and watch her die. Ralden was kind enough to help me. He hammered out the finer points of this plan, and I was grateful for his strategic knowledge. Others in the Regiment had concerns as well, and I think that the trap we knit is as good as it’s going to get. The execution is paramount, and we all need to be ready. Everyone will be important in this; mistakes are not an option. I only wish there was another way. I told Luella she would not be next. I made a promise I know I can’t be certain I’m able to keep. I told her to be strong when I’m not even sure if I can be myself. If anything happens to my squire… No, I can’t think this way. I need to be strong. For myself, for her, for the League and for the Paladins that have died at this person’s hand. I only hope this works. This concludes today’s entry. September 25th I’ve hardly slept. The hours are passing too quickly, like a blur, and I feel like everything is moving so fast that I can hardly keep up. I let my confidence get the best of me… and we failed. Light, did we fail. I’m told the traps weren’t even used. They were never even triggered. We did everything right… or so I thought. It seems impossible that one person could be so powerful… to single handedly incapacitate our defense team by forcing them against one another with illusions. We had been prepared for magical retaliations, but nothing of this magnitude. I should have planned more. I should have tried harder. By all rights, we should all be dead. I’m told that they managed to uncover that the killer is, in fact, a woman… but nothing else thus far. No identity. Still a ghost, preying on our weaknesses. Arkley, Sebastian and Meriliah did a wonderful job - they did everything right - but there was no proper cover for this. We could never have foreseen this type of resilience. I’m told they sustained fair wounds themselves, but I hope they will recover. That is not the worst of it. The group was… infected with shadow magic, some sort of agent that somehow steals their ability to wield the Light. Is it even possible? I’ve never heard of this done before. How can a nonbeliever force this on one with such faith? Our faith empowers us. When has it never been enough? It’s all my fault. I used them as live bait, and now they lost one of the things a Paladin cherishes most in the world. The look on Luella’s face will haunt my dreams for as long as I live… I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to sleep again. “I failed you,” She said to me. It broke my heart. If only she knew that it was I who felt like the failure. I had failed her. I failed them all. We returned to Hearthglen, battered and broken, and still with no more information than we had left with. Not only that, but I believe the Major and Sergeant Drythus nearly came to blows as well. Is this the enemy’s plan? Turn us against one another from the inside? How can things be crumbling so quickly? What am I not seeing here? It’s only a matter of time before it… she… strikes again. Are Luella and Gregovich still targets, despite being unable to use the Light? Or was that her intention all along? Perhaps that’s how she’s able to so effectively kill a Paladin. Take that which is their greatest advantage, break them in both body and spirit, and then leave them to die. I cannot think of a crueler fate. Even so, I must remain strong. I hope Luella does not hate me now for what I’ve done. I hope she forgives me. I noticed, however briefly, that a fairly large amount of that fel residue remained in the area she had attacked us in. I still must wonder if that is accidental or intentional, but either way… it lead us to Lukas the first time. Maybe it will lead us to her next. I do know one thing, however. When next we find this creature, we must be more prepared than we were today. We must explore and be ready for any possibility. I’ve never faced anything like this before, and I think the others feel the same… there’s no room for error. I should go check on the others. The investigation will continue until this killer is brought to justice. I swear it. This concludes today’s entry. September 26th We’ve finally managed to gain a foothold. It was… certainly not without sacrifice, but I think we’re now one step ahead. Our little friend did manage to hit the trap that Ralden and I had secretly put up last night, effectively tracking her location. It didn’t show up until the evening, but we followed the tracker to Duskwood - which, I suppose, is where she found it. Stupid to hope that it would lead us directly to her, but oh well. We managed to pick up the trail via the fel residue she leaves behind, only… it splintered off. One ventured further into Duskwood, the other into Stranglethorn Vale. We had no choice. We split the groups and followed each to their location. My group went to the Vale. We found a very odd cave… filled with biomechanical experiments - undead, to be precise. They were all in some sort of perpetual state of stasis… I’ve never seen anything like it. We found a few entries detailing the experiments and other such plans, signed by a ‘Reginald Craeton,’ which was just as odd as the undead themselves. I’ve never heard this name before, though supposedly we’ve a dossier on him - despite how nearly empty it is, I took the time to briefly read over the file. The hunter’s residue in Craeton’s facility… I’m starting to think the others are right; we’re not dealing with just one person here. We also engaged her briefly. She did quite a number on us, but Ralden managed to get a hard hit on her with a single dagger to the throat. She fell, and it stalled her long enough for her belongings to rattle. She dropped a single piece of paper on her way out of the cavern. I don’t even think she noticed. Luella picked it up. It had a picture of a man, his name - John Fields - and undetermined coordinates on it, which were circled. She thinks it’s the killer’s next target, and I’m inclined to agree. We finally have the advantage. Ralden was given the coordinates to decipher. I doubt it will take long. Maybe we will actually manage to save one this time; we can get to him before she does. The others went through hell, just like Cartres said… I wonder if they were meant to, or if it was simply happenstance. It seems like everything that has happened lately has been purely intentional, so I have my doubts. They seemed terrified when we came to rescue them, locked in a building as they were - but the door opened easily when we found them. They found two more bodies, but… they said the Forsaken disappeared after they looked back. Which could only mean… I get chills just thinking about it. A large inkblot rests here, as if Meredeth had again paused for some time. They said my name was written there, with the following words: “That’s five.” Am I next to die by her hand? Will it even matter if we now have the means to save someone else? I can’t die. I can’t let the Light be taken from me. That is a fate crueler than death itself. I’ve worked so tirelessly to be at this point and I’m still not finished. I want to be more than this. I want to be better than I am. Another inkblot stains the page. In the event of my death, this journal will be returned to the officers of the League of Lordaeron. Perhaps they will find a better use for it so as to bring this killer to justice in my stead. I’m being morbid now. I must keep my faith. I will not die. I will not die. I will not die. I will not die. This concludes today’s entry. Category:Campaigns Category:The League of Lordaeron Category:The First Regiment Category:Events Category:Lightslayers